The Innovation Accelerator
– Boosting Glasgow’s Innovation Economy
The Innovation Accelerator represents a transformative initiative for Glasgow City Region, chosen as one of only three pilot areas across the UK to benefit from a share of £100 million in 26 R&D large scale projects.
This programme aims to elevate Glasgow’s innovation economy by leveraging public sector funding to attract substantial private investment, further enhancing the city’s emerging world-class Innovation Districts.
Glasgow’s notable achievement as one of the Top 20% most innovative cities globally, and its status as the second leading emerging tech destination in the UK, underscore the region’s potential. The Innovation Accelerator will build on these strengths, creating high-value jobs and advancing key sectors through collaborative innovation partnerships. This initiative aligns with the Glasgow City Region Economic Strategy’s vision to establish the region as the most innovative, inclusive, and resilient economy in the UK by 2030.
Three pioneering innovation accelerator projects involving the University of Strathclyde are contributing to Glasgow’s advancement as a hub for cutting-edge manufacturing are listed below.
The ReMake Glasgow project, spearheaded by the University of Strathclyde’s National Manufacturing Institute Scotland (NMIS), is set to transform the UK’s approach to sustainability in manufacturing. This groundbreaking initiative aims to create a pipeline of highly skilled green jobs while significantly reducing waste and carbon emissions.
The ReMake hub will be the first of its kind, situated within the Digital Factory at the new NMIS headquarters. The hub will drive the adoption of circular economy principles, focusing on extending the lifespan of products through remanufacturing, refurbishing, repairing, and direct reuse. This initiative will leverage cutting-edge technology, innovation support, and advanced digital infrastructure to enhance emissions traceability and streamline certification processes.
Despite the substantial environmental, economic, and social benefits of value retention processes, only 1.9% of UK-manufactured products currently incorporate these methods. ReMake Glasgow aims to address this gap by collaborating with major industry players, including Boeing, BA Maintenance Glasgow, SSE Renewables, Baker Hughes Howden, and ATS Global.
Through this project, ReMake Glasgow will not only promote sustainable manufacturing practices but also foster a new workforce equipped with skills essential for a greener economy.
The D3M_CoLAB project represents a significant collaboration between the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland’s (NMIS) Digital Factory and the University of Strathclyde’s Industrial Informatics Cluster (IIC). This initiative aims to transform smart manufacturing by integrating advanced data analytics with cutting-edge design and industry expertise.
The project will establish a hub designed to enhance manufacturers’ data analytics capabilities, improving their design processes, decision-making, and operational efficiency. By leveraging this hub, companies will gain a competitive edge through increased productivity and innovation.
D3M_CoLAB will position the Glasgow City Region as a leader in smart manufacturing. It will offer a range of services, including skills development and graduate placement programmes, alongside collaborative support from NMIS and IIC experts, and partnerships with innovative technology vendors.
A key feature of the programme is its provision for companies to experiment with data-driven transformations without disrupting their daily operations. This will be achieved by enabling the replication of both physical and digital infrastructure in a controlled environment.
Project partners such as Babcock, Infor, and Anaconda will contribute to the project, ensuring that it meets the needs of modern manufacturers and fosters a culture of continuous improvement and innovation.
Stratellite, an initiative led by the Lightweight Manufacturing Centre (LMC) at the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland (NMIS), is set to transform space and photonics manufacturing. This project aims to establish a state-of-the-art flexible manufacturing facility dedicated to these high-tech sectors.
The Stratellite project will create an integrated manufacturing engineering and testing facility, complemented by a collaborative workspace. This setup will foster the development of skills in data-driven manufacturing for both current and future workforces. In addition, a comprehensive business and technical support programme will assist companies operating in the space and photonics industries.
This initiative aims to strengthen the regional supply chain, enhancing Glasgow City Region and Scotland’s position as leaders in advanced and cost-effective manufacturing. By funding researchers’ time to engage in capability-building projects, Stratellite will drive innovation and ensure that local suppliers are at the forefront of the industry.
Led by Innovate UK on behalf of UK Research and Innovation, the pilot Innovation Accelerators programme invested £100m in 26 transformative
R&D projects to accelerate the growth of three high-potential innovation clusters – Glasgow City Region, Greater Manchester and West Midlands.
Last Updated: Sept 2024
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